UPCAST® continuous casting technology a pioneer and leader in its field

UPCAST® upward casting concept of copper rod was invented already in 1968 at Outokumpu´s Pori plant. Since then many new developments have taken place and systematically the technology has been further developed to always meet the current requirements of the customers and markets. Today´s UPCAST® process is a simple, reliable process with easy operation through an advanced control system resulting a low lifecycle cost.
With the consistent and systematic UPCAST®R&D work, nowadays in the company´s own modern Pilot Plant, the capacity of the lines has become bigger, more rod diameter sizes are possible and the lines operate safely and reliably for years and years. Also a remarkable invention of UPCAST®SGTube casting process took place a few years ago – small grains, bigger gains – and the Cu tube upward casting technology reached next levels.
As new applications for copper alloys are being developed the utilization of UPCAST® technology within the copper alloys field is rapidly increasing, too.
There are few things, however, that have always driven the UPCAST®R&D work and the implementation of the new features:
• It has to bring cost savings and guarantee the best possible cost efficiency to the customers.
• The quality of rod has to remain at the good level received or rather become a bit better with every development.
• The process has to remain environmentally friendly Always greener as the slogan says. No harmful emissions nor need for waste treatment mean a reduced environmental footprint along with low lifecycle costs.
UPCAST® – 3rd generation Cu rod casting With this continuous R&D work the original UPCAST® continuous casting technology has again been taken to the next level: with the new coolers and the latest furnace, inductor, automation and control system designs UPCAST® can now offer even more efficient, consistent and reliable Cu rod production process than ever before. Higher speed means more capacity with less costs and results in improved cast rod quality. Possibility of using clean and dry Cu recycled material in the process has become more and more important and UPCAST® has accepted the challenge and can now design a solution for different needs.
All this is available also for existing customers due to unique upgradability of UPCAST® casting lines.
Solutions for small and medium capacities UPCAST® rod production lines are of modular design. Both single- and double-furnace configurations are possible. With a double-furnace configuration having separate melting and casting furnaces it is possible to reach even 40,000 tpa output while 12,000 tpa is possible for a single-furnace configuration. A wide capacity range both in single and double-furnace configurations is available with a unique possibility for upgrade.
Top quality final products require the best cast quality The majority of delivered UPCAST® lines are for Cu-OF rod and mainly with most common cast rod diameter of 8 mm. Rods with bigger diameters are used for manufacturing a variety of finished products e.g. bus-bars, shaped profiles, trolley wires, electroplating anodes etc. UPCAST® Cu-OF rod with excellent formability is well suited for all electrical applications. Cast & Form process combines UPCAST® Cu rod casting with Asmag´s revolutionary ASCON continuous rotary extrusion ending with the drawing, stretching, cutting and packing. This clearly reduces the investment costs and offers the customers a very reliable full process solution with low operational costs.
UPCAST®-Hybrid – perfect solution for capacity optimizing UPCAST®-Hybrid technology is based on using the same equipment for casting both Cu rod and Cu tube. This has been achieved by modifying certain product specific parts of the UPCAST®-SGTube casting machine and coilers to facilitate easy changeover.
The flexibility of the product mix makes the hybrid system a truly cost-effective solution for companies with a diverse product portfolio and a certain capacity requirement for both products. No need to have two separate lines and in worst case neither one being fully utilized all the year round. With the UPCAST®-Hybrid line one can optimize the full capacity between both products or sometimes for only the other product. Supporting customers UPCAST® continuous castings lines are operating every day of the week. This would not be possible without a fast, reliable and continuous UPCAST® Customer Service and Support for consumables, spare parts and technical support – on phone, online and on site. The opposite could mean major losses through the lost production time for customers. The bi-annual UPCAST® Technical User Meeting gets together global customers and it has provided an excellent platform for exchanging experiences and ideas and for learning what is new in this business. The customers benefit for being part of UPCAST®Family.
UPCAST® reliability is built on +40 Years of consistent development work, operational experience and excellent customer service. Please visit us in Tube Arabia 2015 at Stand #2ZB150 !